Kerala: CPM MLA faces party action over Kuttiady dissent

KOZHIKODE: CPM Kozhikode district secretariat has initiated steps to take action against MLA KP Kunhammed Kutty in connection with the public show of dissent in the party over candidature in Kuttiady constituency in the run up to the recent assembly elections.
The district secretariat proposed to the state secretariat and state committee for demoting him from the district secretariat to the district committee.But, the nod of state secretariat and state committee is needed for it. Meanwhile, CPM district secretary P Mohanan refuted reports of disciplinary action against Kutty.
The district secretariat took the view that Kutty wished to become the candidate in Kuttiady and couldn’t effectively intervene to prevent public protest against giving the seat to KC(M) as per LDF’s decision.
However, it is not known whether the state secretariat will endorse the decision to relegate him to a lower committee as it is not usual to take disciplinary action when the party is preparing to start its organizational conferences. There are chances of the party deciding to opt for a reduced disciplinary action.
CPM had faced an unprecedented public protest from local cadres in Kuttiady against handing over the seat to KC(M). The party’s rank and file had rooted for Kutty’s candidate in the first protest march and they had put up posters and banners in support of his candidature in the area. The local party cadres had taken out a huge protest march on March 10 in a public show of dissent which shook the CPM leadership.
Realizing that the discontent could spill over to other constituencies in the district and spoil LDF’s chances in Nadapuram and Vadakara, the state leadership then initiated talks with KC(M) chairman Jose K Mani. Kutty was fielded as the candidate. He won from the seat with a margin of 333 votes.